531 - Eric Gardner: Playing With Melissa Etheridge and Tom Morello, Patience on the LA Scene, “Finding An Artist’s Language”

Working Drummer

Eric Gardner has been on the LA scene for 25 years touring and recording with a wide variety of bands and artists over that time. These days, two in particular represent most of his activity - Melissa Etheridge and Tom Morello. He is a graduate of Steve Rucker's program at the University of Miami and has performed with Garbage, Iggy Pop, Cypress Hill, Iggy Pop, Morrisey, Steve Vai, MC5, Slash, Beck, and many others.

In this episode, Eric talks about:

• Getting the Melissa Etheridge gig from a single recommendation, sight unseen
• Learning to be sensitive to an artist's anxiety and need for control, and act accordingly
• What it means to “find an artist’s language”
• His long musical and personal relationship with Tom Morello
• How “going out to network” should look more like “going to see your friends play”
• His first few years in LA and how his relationship with the scene has evolved over 25 years
• Studying with Steve Rucker at University of Miami

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